Great Grandad George left money to Nic so when he was old enough, Nic could fulfil George's wishes to find Su Ang and Sergeant Abe who saved his life on the Sandakan Death March in World War Two. Like George, Nic is brave and impulsive. He needs to balance his emotions and commonsense. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Arisa Abe, a student visiting from Japan, moves into the Chamberlain household with Nic and his sister Talia. They fall in love but Nic is absorbed with physical fitness, and is fascinated by orangutans and George's tape recordings. Suddenly Arisa goes home and Nic doesn't believe her reasons. With school over, Nic sets off on his journey to study orangutans and to follow George's wishes. He also seeks Arisa to find why she left so urgently.